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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28516455">C H A N G E</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmieexHolland/pseuds/AmieexHolland'>AmieexHolland</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>IT (Movies - Muschietti)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Multi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:53:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>14,070</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28516455</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmieexHolland/pseuds/AmieexHolland</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The summer of 1989 was the summer where everything in Haliey Uris’ life was flipped upside down. With the news of her parents divorce and being sent away to spend the summer with her cousin in Derry, Maine, Haliey thought her life couldn’t get any worse. Then she met the losers’ club, a group of people who would end up becoming her best friends before the summer ended, and she realised that maybe things wouldn’t be too bad. But just when things start to turn around, Haliey finds herself in the most horrifying summer she had ever been a part of while fears literally come to life all around her. She always knew the summer of ‘89 would be different than others. But what she wasn’t expecting was for her life to change as much as it was going to. And all Haliey Uris could do was just hope it would change for the better.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ben Hanscom &amp; Original Female Character(s), Beverly Marsh &amp; Original Female Character(s), Bill Denbrough/Original Female Character(s), Eddie Kaspbrak &amp; Original Female Character(s), IT Chapter 2 - Relationship, Pennywise (IT) &amp; Original Female Character(s), Richie Tozier &amp; Original Female Character(s), Stanley Uris &amp; Original Female Character(s), The Losers Club (IT) &amp; Original Female Character(s), idk how tags work - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue - the divorce</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The first time Haliey Uris saw the signs was two years prior, when the girl had just turned eleven and was at the age where she believed her life would be as happy as it was right then for the rest of her life.</p><p>It started with the small comments here and there, little jabs that her parents threw back and forth at each other occasionally in low whispers. They hadn’t wanted their daughter to hear, but she had caught them all and that was when she first realised something was wrong.</p><p>But then came the yelling into the early hours of the morning, the same yelling that caused countless sleepless nights for the young girl. Then there was the crying, tears being shed from both sides while Haliey cried herself to sleep silently in her own room.</p><p>After a year, the sadness turned into pure anger and hatred and Haliey found herself showing up to school with dark bags under her eyes almost all of the time from sleepless nights.</p><p>There were days where Hailey’s parents wouldn’t even be in the same room together, their usual family dinners turning into nothing more than Haliey sitting by herself at the dinner table with a bowl of mac and cheese in front of her. Other days Haliey wouldn’t see one of her parents whether that was her father spending a night in a hotel or her mother spending a few nights at Haliey’s grandparents’ house.</p><p>But then came the day Haliey knew was coming.</p><p>“Your mother and I are getting a divorce.”</p><p>It was like the words hit her physically, the girl flinching back slightly as she stared at her parents.</p><p>“I don’t understand.”</p><p>She did understand. She understood very well what was going on. She just didn’t want to accept it, not wanting to believe the words coming out of her parents mouth.</p><p>She wanted nothing more than to go back to the happy family they had been, wondering where an earth that had gone to.</p><p>“Your father and I believe it’s in our best interest as a family if we split up.”</p><p>Had Haliey done something wrong? Was she the cause of this?</p><p>“We wouldn’t be much of a family then, would we?”</p><p>The words made the two adults flinch and Haliey could already feel the tears forming in her eyes, her whole body numb as she stared at her feet.</p><p>“We’re sorry, Peanut”</p><p>Haliey was silent, her arms slowly coming up to hug herself as she left a few stray tears rolling down her face. It took her a minute to finally look up at her parents, the realisation that all three of them were crying made her heart hurt even more. But then she saw the hesitation in their eyes and she knew they were hiding something more.</p><p>“What else?”</p><p>Her parents sighed and glanced at each other, but Haliey couldn’t help but notice the distance in between them growing bigger and bigger with every passing second.</p><p>“With the summer approaching, we’ve decided to send you to spend your summer with your cousin Stanley in Derry.”</p><p>Haliey froze, her arms going limp as she looked up at her parents and whispered, “What?”</p><p>It’s not that she doesn’t love Stanley Uris. He was probably the closest thing she had to a best friend, the two had basically been tied together and the hip growing up. If it hadn’t been for the fact that they lived so far away from each other, Haliey was sure her and Stan would be even closer.</p><p>Haliey would've loved to spend the summer with Stan any other year, but hearing that from her parents right after the news of them getting a divorce made it seem more like they were trying to get rid of her.</p><p>Maybe she was the real reason for her parents divorce.</p><p>“It will only be for the summer, darling. Then we will be able to finalise the divorce and figure out the whole living situation.”</p><p>Haliey didn’t respond after that ending the conversation faster than any of them would have liked. There were so many questions Haliey had, but asking them would only make it worse.</p><p>She didn’t want that, especially not after she just split her family apart.</p><p>So the last few weeks of school were long for the girl, the family of three barely talking to each other as they went about life.</p><p>Her parents tried to act like everything was okay, assuring the girl every moment that things wouldn’t change. But Haliey knew the truth and would just nod weakly before locking herself in her room and crying herself to sleep.</p><p>The school year finally came to a close and Haliey was put on the first plane to Derry. She had been numb and quiet as she said goodbye, knowing that when she came back nothing would be the same.</p><p>The plane ride was long, but Hailey eventually reached Derry. The thought of seeing her cousin was the only thing keeping her going, wanting nothing more than to sink into his arms and that’s exactly what she did when she caught sight of her curly heard best friend.</p><p>She couldn’t stop the tears as she practically leapt into the boys arms, Stan’s arms wrapping around her just as tight as he whispered, “I missed you.”</p><p>That was enough to put a smile on Haliey’s face, something that had been rare since she heard the news.</p><p>“I missed you too.”</p><p>Standing there in Stan’s arms, she felt safe and loved for the first time in what felt like forever. And she just couldn’t help but think that maybe...just maybe...the summer was going to not be as bad as she thought.</p><p>Little did Hailey know, but the summer of 89’ would be the best and worst summer of her life. And it all started because of a group called the Losers’ Club.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. O N E - summer</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>If there was one thing that Stan and Hailey loved most in the world besides each other, it was bird watching . From a young age, bird watching had been a source of comfort for the two, something that they would participate in together leading to many early mornings out in the woods behind Stan’s house.</p><p>It was only Hailey’s frost morning in Derry and she couldn’t imagine a better morning than bird watching with her cousin. It was the first time the girl had been able to relax, the swirling of the colours in the sky as the sun rose and the soft chirping of birds as they awoke being enough to make a content smile appear on her face.</p><p>Hailey turned her head to glance at Stan. The boy looked back at her before offering a small smile. Hailey returned it before gently grabbing a hold of her cousin's hand beginning to drag him off the back porch and towards the woods.</p><p>They reached their bird watching spot in less than a minute, the small bush that was up against a small hill letting the two sit comfortably as they hid behind to prevent the birds from seeing them and flying off.</p><p>Hailey rested her head against Stan's shoulder as he flipped through a bird book that Hailey had given him the Christmas before, a blanket draped around the both of them as they sat there silently.</p><p>A small gasp left the girls lips as a bird suddenly flew down and landed on a branch near the two. Hailey gently nudged Stan who looked over at her in confusion before following her line of sight. His eyes widened and he grinned before quickly flicking through the book on his lap.</p><p>The boy nudged her pointing down to a picture of the same bird that was sitting on the bench in front of the two. The bird was a small fluff ball with the tiniest beak ever. It looked like a baby and it’s gray and black colouring was beautiful. Above the picture in bold lettering were the words ‘Black-capped Chickadee.’</p><p>Hailey smiled and the two looked back up and watched the bird for a moment longer before the bird flew away. After the bird was gone Stan began to whisper some facts to Hailey, the young girl listened intently as she watched the bird disappear.</p><p>This continued for twenty more minutes, new birds showing up every so often and Hailey pointing them out before Stan showed her which bird it was. The two had just been watching a blue Nuthatch peck at some berries when a voice yelled out, “Stanley Uris! You are going to be late!”</p><p>The noise made the bird fly away almost instantly. Hailey frowned, although it wasn’t because the bird had left. “Shit,” Stan muttered as he shoved the book into his backpack and stumbled onto his feet, Hailey following suit.</p><p>Stan could feel his cousin's eyes on him and he let his eyes flicker over to her, his heart aching slightly at the sight of his cousin who was trying everything to try and hide the sadness in her eyes.</p><p>Ï’ll be back,” he assured her, the sincerity of words allowing the girl to relax a little. “I just have to go to school for half a day and then I’m out for summer and we’ll have all the time in the world.”</p><p>Hailey nodded silently and Stan watched her for a second “You going to be okay?”</p><p>“Of course,” Hailey told him, forcing a smile.</p><p>Stan didn’t seem to believe her and went to say something when his father's voice suddenly yelled out, “Stanley Uris!”</p><p>“I’m coming!” Stan yelled back in annoyance before casting his glance towards Hailey. The girl chuckled softly while Stan rolled his eyes, a playful smile on his face.</p><p>“I’ll see you later, okay?” Stan asked as he held his fist out to the girl.</p><p>Hailey smiled softly and fist bumped her cousin before nodding, “Later.”</p><p>Stan gave her a soft smile, his eyes flicking over her before he said, “I’m really glad you're here for the summer.”</p><p>The words stunned the girl and she didn’t get a chance to respond before Stan was running back towards the house where his father was yelling at the boy for almost being late. Hailey watched after her cousin until he disappeared down the street on his bike.</p><p>It was then that Hailey fully realised the situation she was in, so she just let out a soft sigh and fell back down behind the bush, her thoughts consuming her head while she began her wait for Stanley.</p><p>———</p><p>No one had ever felt more relief than the students of Derry, Maine when the final bell rang out meaning summer had officially started. Kids were pushing and shoving each other out of the classrooms, each racing to their friends before hurrying out of the building.</p><p>From one classroom came three boys, the three were laughing loudly as they walked through the halls. All glad that school had finished for summer.</p><p>“So there’s like this church full of Jews, right? And Stan has to take this super Jew-y test,” the smallest of the three, Eddie Kaspbrak, began. He had a fanny pack strapped around his waist, his backpack secured tightly on his shoulders, he glanced at his watch to check the time before looking back up at his friends ready to tell them more facts.</p><p>“But how does it work?” Bill Denbrough, the one who most would consider the leader of the group, asked. He was the tallest out of the three and over the past year his eyes always held this far away look. Most assumed it was due to what had happened to his younger brother Georgie Denbrough who had gone missing towards the beginning of the school year, but no one dared to bring the subject up.</p><p>“They slice the tip of his dick off,” Eddie shrugged as if it were obvious.</p><p>The third member of the group frowned, his eyebrows scrunching together as he glanced at the other two from behind his glasses. “But then Stan’ll have nothing left!” Richie Tozier cried out. He was the joker of the group, his crude jokes being something that belonged to only him and which was one of the reasons he had ended up being classified as a Loser since day one much like his friends.</p><p>“It is true,” Eddie insisted. Richie shook his head, both him and Bill smiling in disbelief.</p><p>Both boys went to question Eddie some more when a voice exclaimed, “Wait, you guys!”</p><p>A hand came down on Eddie and Bill’s shoulders and three boys glanced back to see the final member of their group, Stanley Uris.</p><p>“Hey, Stan, what happens at the mitzvah anyways?” Bill asked, the conversation the three boys had been having still very confusing and important to the three. “Ed says they slice the tip of the d-d-d-dick off.”</p><p>“Yeah, and i think the Rabbi’s gonna pull down your pants, turn to the crowd and say, ‘where’s the beef?” Richie laughed earning a roll of the eyes from Stan as the four chuckled.</p><p>“At the bar mitzvah, I read from the Torah…” Stan began to explain. “And then I make a speech, and suddenly I become a man.”</p><p>“There’s more funner ways to become a man,” Richie told him, a smirk appearing on his face as he wiggled his eyebrows at his friend.</p><p>Stan made a face of disgust. “More fun ways,’ you mean,” he muttered, but Richie wasn’t listening.</p><p>The boy was too busy having a staring contest with the bullies of the school. The Bowers Gang consisted of four boys- Patrick Hockstetter, Blech Huggins, Victor Criss, and the worst of the four Henry Bowers. They had taken it upon themselves to make everyone’s life a living nightmare and lucky for Stan, Richie, Eddie and Bill, they ended up on the receiving end most of the time.</p><p>Neither of the boys spoke as they walked past the four bullies, but they could all feel Bowers’ Gang looking at them like they were fresh meat which maybe in their eyes they were. It was only when they had passed them and Richie had started to notice the awkward silence that had fallen upon him and his friends that he decided to speak up.</p><p>Richie looked to his friends and gave them a forced smile. “Shit. Do you think they’ll sign my yearbook? ‘Dear Richie… sorry for taking a steaming hot dump in your backpack last month. Have a good summer,” Richie jokes, finally easing the tension around them.</p><p>Eddie and Bill laughed at that while Stan sent a glare after Greta Keene who had just about knocked him over from how fast she was moving through the halls. Stan shook his head and turned around, thankful that he didn’t have to deal with someone like her.</p><p>“Come on. Let’s get out of here,” Stan said to his friends. Not a single one of them objected.</p><p>——</p><p>“Best feeling ever,” Stan announced with a bright smile as he dumped the last of his school things into the trash.</p><p>“Yeah?” Richie questioned as he and the rest of the group finished throwing their things away as well. “Try tickling your pickle for the first time.”</p><p>Stan cracked a small smile and rolled his eyes, having already expected something like that from his friend. Luckily he didn’t have to respond because Eddie was already changing the subject.</p><p>“What do you guys wanna do tomorrow?” Eddie asked as he put his backpack back on.</p><p>Stan's eyes instantly lit up and he threw his backpack on grinning at his friends. “Actually, I was going to talk to you guys about that,”he said, his friends all glancing over at him. “Uh...you guys remember my cousin Hailey, right? Well, she’s visiting for the summer and I didn’t know if it would be okay for her to tag along?”</p><p>Richie smirked, “You mean the same Hailey Bill had a major crush on when we were six?” He clapped a hand on Bill’s shoulder, the boy blushed slightly shoving his friend's hand away.</p><p>“Didn’t you also have a crush on her?” Eddie asked, his nose scrunched up as he looked at his friend confused.</p><p>Richie closed his eyes. “Come on, Eds. Don’t fucking lie to me and tell me you didn’t either. I’m pretty sure we all did except Stan for obvious reasons,” Richie chuckled. “Bill’s was just worse.” He glanced over at the blushing boy and gave him a teasing smirk, “He had it bad for the girl.”</p><p>“Richie, shut up,” Stan sighed, not liking when Richie spoke about his cousin like that.</p><p>Bill glanced over at the curly haired boy and gave him a slight smile. “Y-Y-Yeah, Stan, of course sh-sh-sh-she can,” Bill replied, finally answering the question Stan had asked.</p><p>“Thanks,” Stan said, slightly relieved and also excited to tell his cousin the news.</p><p>“Is she still hot?” Richie asked, earning a slap in the back of the head from Eddie.</p><p>“Dude, shut up! It’s his cousin, asshole,” Eddie muttered in annoyance.</p><p>Richie playfully glared at Eddie before shrugging. “Whatever. I start my training tomorrow anyways,” he announced.</p><p>“What training?” Eddie asked not believing him.</p><p>“Street Fighter,” Richie answered as if it were obvious.</p><p>“Is that how you want to spend your summer? Stuck inside an arcade?” Eddie questioned.</p><p>“Beats spending it inside of your mother,” Richie retorted before holding his hand up to Stan for a high five. “Oh!”</p><p>Stan quickly grabbed the boy’s arm and put it back by his side, his eyes on Bill as he asked, “What if we go to the quarry? Hailey’s been wanting to go there for a while.”</p><p>“Guys, we have the b-b-barrens,” Bill reminded them, his eyes flickering over his friends with hope in his eyes.”</p><p>Stan’s smile deflated slightly, but he was quick to not show it, not wanting to upset his friend. “Right,” Stan nodded, already thinking of how to explain why they were going to the barrens to Hailey. He was sure she wouldn’t mind, but he didn’t want her getting bored or freaked out on the first day of summer.</p><p>“Betty Ripsom’s mom,” Eddie suddenly said, causing all the boys to turn to see Mrs. Ripsom standing near the bottom of the staircase, her eyes scanning hopefully over all the children, while two police men stood by their car behind her.</p><p>“Is she really expecting to see her come out of that school?” Stan asked, feeling a pang of guilt as he saw the utter distraught look on the woman’s face as she looked between students.</p><p>“I don’t know. As if Betty Ripsom’s been hiding in HomeEc for the last few weeks,” Eddie muttered.</p><p>“Do you think they’ll actually find her?” Stan asked as he looked back at his friends.</p><p>“Sure. In a ditch. All decomposed, covered in worms and maggots. Smelling like Eddie’s mom’s underwear.” Richie said.</p><p>“Shut up!” Eddie groaned. “That’s freaking disgusting.”</p><p>Bill gulped slightly before taking a step towards Richie, “She’s not dead. She’s m-m-missing.”</p><p>Richie, Eddie, and Stan glanced over at Bill, their hearts dropping slightly as they realised how insensitive their conversation had been. They knew Bill still had hope for Georgie after all this time and they also knew that he had hope for others that had gone missing as well.</p><p>“Sorry Bill, she’s missing,” Richie corrected himself as he pushed his glasses up his nose.</p><p>Satisfied with that response, Bill turned to begin his walk home, with the others following behind him. “You know the barrens aren’t that bad,” Richie said. “Who doesn’t love splashing around in shitty water? I’m sure Hailey would love that.”</p><p>Bill rolled his eyes slightly and went to say something to Richie but turned to find Henry Bowers was grabbing onto Richie’s backpack and pulling him back. Richie bumped into Stan, the two falling to the ground while Stan’s kippah flew off his head.</p><p>Patrick hockstetter seemed to notice this and was quick to grab it, before Stan had even noticed it had fallen off. “Nice frisbee, flamer,” Patrick mocked.</p><p>“Give it back,” Stan insisted. He went to reach for it, but Patrick jumped onto his feet before throwing the Kippah onto a moving bus.</p><p>“Fuckin’ losers,” Patrick laughed while Blench went up behind Eddie and burped into his ear. This made Eddie gag and quickly move to the other side of Bill while Richie and Stan stumbled to their feet.</p><p>Henry didn’t even acknowledge Bill except for purposely bumping into him as he and his friends walked away. “Loser,” Henry called over his shoulder as Bill glared at him.</p><p>Before any of his friends could stop him, Bill was turning around to yell after Henry, “You s-s-s-suck, Bowers.”</p><p>“Shut up Bill,” Eddie hissed, but it was too late, Henry had heard him.</p><p>Henry froze before turning to look at Bill. “Did you s-s-s-say something B-b-b-b-Billy?” Henry mocked while Bill stood his ground and continued to glare at the older boy. “You got a free ride this year cause of your little brother. Ride’s over, Denbrough.”</p><p>Henry walked closer so that he was only inches away from the boy, but Bill  didn’t flinch, only stood taller, waiting for whatever Henry would throw at him. But then Henry was looking over Bill at the two cops, one of which was his father who merely stared at Henry.</p><p>Henry’s smirk dropped and he looked back at Bill. “This summer is gonna be a hurt-train for you and your faggot friends,”he threatened before proceeding to lick his and and drag it down the side of Bill’s face.</p><p>Bill, Stan, Richie and Eddie watched in silence as Henry, Patrick and Belch met up with Victor by their car. “I wish he’d go missing,” Richie finally said while they all watched the car drive away.</p><p>“he’s probably the one doing it,’’ Eddie muttered.</p><p>The four stood there for a moment longer before Bill finally looked away. “Come on,” he said. And with that, the four so-called losers walked away from the school, ready to start the summer that they had no idea would be one of the best and worst summers of their lives.</p><p>…</p><p>“See you guys tomorrow!” Stan called out as he turned his bike and began to pedal down his street, instantly breaking off from the group while they all yelled out goodbyes to him.</p><p>Stan had never pedalled so fast in his life. Something about getting to tell Hailey that she was invited to hang out with his friends just had him so excited and he couldn’t stop the grin growing on his face.</p><p>He wasn’t even thinking about how he would have to practice reading from the Torah in an hour with his father. All he could think about was getting to see his cousin again. She was easily his best friend. Sure, he had Richie, Bill and Eddie, but Hailey had been by his side since they were in diapers and he always looked forward to seeing the girl.</p><p>Stan was quick to stop in front of his house and put out his kickstand before running into his house, ignoring the shouts coming from his mother as he ran to where Hailey’s room was. The door was shut, so Stan knocked a few times before he heard a quiet voice call out, “Come in.”</p><p>Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Stan opened the door, his eyes locking on his cousin who was sitting next to the window just staring outside. Her eyes moved over to where the boy stood and it was like a switch got flicked inside her and she became a totally different person, a bright smile dawning her face.</p><p>“Stanley,” Hailey greeted as the boy moved to sit across from her on the window seat.</p><p>“Sorry i took so long,” Stan said as he tossed his backpack onto the floor, too excited to care that it wasn’t perfectly propped up. “I got distracted throwing all of my school supplies away then Bowers showed by and-“</p><p>“Bowers?Whose Bowers?” Hailey tilted her head, the name sounding familiar making a shiver run down her spine.</p><p>“Someone you never want to meet,” Stan assured her. “He’s probably one of the worst people in this town. Him and his gang love picking on people, especially people like me.”</p><p>Hailey frowned at that before her eyes trailed up to his head. “Your Kippah…” She muttered sadly, having an idea what happened.</p><p>“Yeah, Patrick, one of Bowers’ goons, threw it onto a bus, so it's gone for good,” Stan shook his head. “But it's fine.”</p><p>Hailey’s frown didn’t leave her face and she went to talk more about the incident, but Stan was already changing the subject. “Anyways, how was your day?” He asked, his eyes scanning over her face to make sure she didn’t lie to him.</p><p>Hailey shrugged and looked back out the window. “It was okay i guess. I was bored  most of the time,” she replied.</p><p>It didn’t take a genius to know that something else was going on. “You were thinking about them all day, weren’t you?” He sighed.</p><p>“Yeah,” Hailey admitted, her head dropping slightly while  she felt Stan’s eyes burning into the side of her head.</p><p>Stan reaches out and places a hand on top of hers before giving it a small squeeze. “Hey, I have some good news.” He told her to make the girl's eyes meet his. “I know the perfect thing to clear your mind.”</p><p>“What.” asked Hailey, knowing that Stan’s goal for the summer was to get her mind off the divorce.</p><p>“My friends invited the both of us to hang out tomorrow. You should come,” Stan suggested as he nudged her slightly.</p><p>“You want me to come?” She looked surprised while Stan just gave her a confused look.</p><p>“Of course I do. You remember Bill, Richie and Eddie right?” Stan questioned.</p><p>“Hailey, these are my friends,” a young Stanley Uris said as he gestured to the six year olds in front of him.</p><p>“Richie.” He pointed towards a young boy with a big pair of glasses. The boy gave her a toothless grin before winking at her, the action making Hailey’s eyes widened in surprise as she took a step closer to her cousin. So Richie was obviously a flirt.</p><p>“Eddie,” Stan introduced as he pointed towards a small boy that stood close to Richie. Hailey watched curiously as Eddie put something in his mouth before inhaling deeply.</p><p>Noticing her confused glances, Eddie just shrugged with a shy smile before whispering, “Asthma.” Hailey didn’t know what asthma was, but she could tell she was going to like Eddie.</p><p>“And Bill.”</p><p>Hailey’s eyes flickered over to the last boy who was staring at her with wide eyes, his mouth opened slightly before he chuckled nervously and whispered, “H-H-Hi.”</p><p>Hailey stared at Bill for a moment before taking a small step from out behind Stanley, a shy smile on her face as she whispered back, “Hi.”</p><p>Stan smiled at his friends and cousin before placing a hand on Hailey’s shoulders. “Guys,” he began</p><p>“This is Hailey.”</p><p>Hailey blinked the memory of meeting the boys away before smiling. “I haven’t seen those guys in years,”she said. It was true. The last time she had seen them all had to have been when she was eight, that being the last summer she had spent in Derry.</p><p>“So you’ll come?” Stan asked hopefully, a pleading look on his face. “Come on, Hailey. Spending some time with me and the guys could be just what you need.”</p><p>How could she say no to a face like that.</p><p>“Sure, why not,” Hailey shrugged before she was thrown back against the window by Stans sudden hug.</p><p>“Thank you!” Stan exclaimed, happy that his cousin would be there to hang out with him and his friends instead of staying inside. Although, if she hadn’t agreed to go, he would have stayed back to be with her. Hailey got over her shock and smiled softly before hugging her cousin back, her eyes closing as she squeezed the boy tightly.</p><p>Maybe Stan was right. Maybe spending time with boys would be just what she needed.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. T W O - new friends</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Stanley’s voice was all Hailey could hear as she quietly played with the hem of her yellow summer dress while Stan practiced the readings he would have to recite from the Torah. She didn’t quite understand everything that he was saying due to the fact he was stuttering and mispronouncing a few words, but she understood the gist of what he was saying and she was proud to say the least.</p><p>Hailey had always loved listening to her cousin, his voice had a soft warm tone to it that made her relax  every time he opened his mouth. But just when a small smile had started to form on her face, her uncle, Donald Uris, had stopped the boy, a deep frown on his face “You're not studying, Stanley.” </p><p>Hailey glanced up from her dress to look at her uncle who stood above the two on the upper level. She glanced to her cousin who had lowered his head slightly, his shoulders tensing as he stared at the book in front of him.</p><p>“How’s it gonna look…the rabbi’s son can’t even finish his own Torah reading,” his father frowned, shaking his head at the boy. “Take the book to my office. Obviously you’re not using it.”</p><p>The girl winced at the harsh words before looking over at her cousin again, the boy nodding numbly as he picked the book up. His eyes flicking over to lock with her own. She offered him a small smile which he returned with a weak one before he disappeared from the room to put the book in his father's office.</p><p>“Hailey,” her uncle called out and the girl was quick to look up at him. “I’m going to grab my things then you and Stanley can meet me in the car, okay?”</p><p>She nodded silently in response and her uncle seemed to like that because he gave her a small nod before walking away, leaving the girl to sit alone in the middle of the synagogue. She didn’t know how long she was sitting there before she began to get a little impatient from waiting on her cousin. Why it took Stan so long to put a single book away was beyond her, but she couldn’t bring herself to go after him and tell him to hurry up, thinking that would be to mean.</p><p>So Hailey just sat there, her fingers messing with the hem of her dress once again as she softly hummed to herself.</p><p>“Hailey.”</p><p>The young instantly tensed before her head shot up, her eyes flickering around her in confusion at the voice that sounded almost identical to her father’s. “Peanut,” the voice said again and Hailey found herself jumping to her feet.</p><p>“Dad?” she questioned, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion as she gulped. What was her father doing here? Hadn’t she been sent away so he and her mother could finish off their divorce?.</p><p>“It’s all your fault, peanut,: her father’s voice rang out, a confused look crossing the girl's face. “How could you split your mother and I up like this? If it weren’t for you, we’d still be together. We wouldn’t need this stupid divorce”.</p><p>“I-I…” Hailey began, but once she saw a figure standing in the shadows across the room, the figure belonging to someone she thought was her father.</p><p>“You did this. You split up our family! You’re the reason everything’s gone to shit. No wonder we sent you away for the summer. It’s not because of the divorse. It’s because we need a break from you,” Her father's voice hissed, growing nastier and more hateful by the second.</p><p>“I didn’t mean to. I didn’t know!” Hailey defended her voice low and trembling as her eyes began to prick with tears.</p><p>“You’re a shitty excuse for a daughter. We should just get rid of you now before you can ruin our lives further,” her father spat, his words hitting Hailey so hard that she had to wrap her arms around herself for comfort.</p><p>“Dad,” Hailey cried out, but all he did was laugh in response. However, he wasn’t laughing for long before the sound of his laughter seemed to rise in pitch, morphing into laughter that Hailey didn’t recognise as the figure started to make its way into the light.</p><p>Hailey felt the breath get caught in her throat at the sight of a clown standing there, the figure turning out to not even be her father. Did that mean the clown had been the one saying all those things?</p><p>“Oh, poor little Hailey. All alone and loved by no one,” the clown mocked.</p><p>“That’s...that’s not true,” Hailey insisted as she shook her head, her feet glued to the floor while the clown slowly started to walk towards her.</p><p>“Your parents sent you away for the summer, did they not? And your cousin Stanley. Well, he can’t stand you. There’s a reason he hasn’t come back yet and you know it. He just wants to enjoy the time he has away from you,” the clown told the girl, a smirk spreading across its face as it stalked closer.</p><p>“That’s not true!” Hailey exclaimed, tears freely falling down her face as she tried to ignore the clown’s words. However, that was hard when her biggest fear was the people she loved the most turning their back on her.</p><p>“You’re alone. You’re worthless,” the clown muttered, now only a few feet away. He stopped before he could get any closer and Hailey could do nothing more than just stare at him, silently praying that her uncle or even Stan might return and save her.</p><p>“No one could ever love you.”</p><p>Then, before Hailey could even blink the clown was running at her, its mouth opening up wide to reveal rows of teeth that had Hailey screaming. The high pitched scream that fell from her lips combined with the high pitched scream of her cousin coming from upstairs (which she had yet to notice) was enough to jerk her body into motion, the girl bolting away from the clown and out of the synagogue as fast as she could.</p><p>She was just about to run out of the front entrance when someone coming from the stairs collided into her. Hailey hit the ground hard groening and opened her eyes to come face to face with someone else. Another scream escaped her lips and it was quickly returned by the person she had ran into-her cousin, Stan.</p><p>“Jesus, Stanley!” the girl cried out, her eyes wide with fear as she pushed herself to her feet.</p><p>“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I didn’t see you coming. Are you...are you okay?” Stan asked worriedly as he got up to his feet, his body tense as he looked around him almost like he was afraid someone would pop out at them.</p><p>Hailey was silent for a moment as she looked back towards the room she had just come from. The clown had disappeared and there didn’t seem to be any sign of him having existed at all. Not wanting to freak her cousin out or have him think she was crazy, the girl just sent Stan a small forced smile.</p><p>“Oh, I’m fine,” she assured him, her eyes flickering over his slightly pale face. “What about you? Are you okay?”</p><p>“What? Me? Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” Stan asked, his voice rushing out quickly.</p><p>However, Hailey didn’t seem to notice and only gave the boy a sympathetic smile before saying, “Your father was a bit harsh back there.” Stan’s face fell at that, both out of relief and embarrassment since Hailey had to witness the whole thing. “Hey, it’s okay. You’ll get it. I can even help you practice if you want.</p><p>Stan looked up to his cousin in surprise. “Really? You’d do that?” the boy asked, his voice coming out soft as his eyes flickered over her face looking for a sign that she didn’t actually want to help him.</p><p>“Of course. I’ve got nothing better to do,” Hailey pointed out, a nervous laugh escaping her lips as she looked back towards where the clown had been standing only moments before.</p><p>Stan looked in the direction she was looking in confusion, but quickly looked away when he heard a loud honking from outside. “Shit, that's my dad. We should go,” Stan muttered and Hailey swore she had never agreed to something so fast in her life.</p><p>So together, the two walked out of the synagogue, leaving the nightmares they had just witnessed behind them.</p><p>—-                                                        </p><p>Hailey stared at her hands which had balled into fists in front her, her knuckles so white that she swore if she tightened her grip anymore her fingers might fall off. It was the next day and officially the first day of summer, but Hailey had yet to get the events that had taken place the day before out of her head.</p><p>Her father's voice...the clown...it had all just seemed too real to be something her mind had made up.</p><p>“Hailey!” Stan’s voice rang out from downstairs, instantly snapping the girl out of her thoughts.</p><p>She quickly relaxed her hands and lifted her head before calling out, “Yes?”</p><p>“Bill, Richie and Eddie are here! I’m going to go and get my bike, I’ll meet you outside, okay?”</p><p>“Okay,” the girl called out to him before she heard the sound of her cousin’s footsteps disappearing and the sound of the door slamming behind him. It was only then that Hailey looked back at herself in the mirror, pausing slightly to fix her hair once again before she was walking out of her room to go meet up with the boys outside.</p><p>Outside, Stan was already near his friends, his bike by his side as Richie rambled on about how he was sure Hailey had gotten even hotter since the last time they saw her. “I mean, five years is a long time. She’s got to be a total babe by now,” Richie rambled. “Do you know if she has a boyfriend?”</p><p>“No,” Stan muttered in annoyance. “She does not.”</p><p>Riche glanced over to bill and nudged him slightly with his elbow. “You hear that, Bill? There’s still a chance.” Richie teased.</p><p>Bill sent his friend a small glare in his direction, but it was quickly replaced by a look of pure shock, his eyes widening and his mouth falling open as she looked at something behind Richie. Both Eddie and Richie gave the boy a confused look before turning around, their eyes widening at the sight before them while Stan just smiled.</p><p>The girl had definitely grown up since the last time they had seen her. Her hair was now long, a sharp contrast from the bob cut she had sported five years ago. Although she still had some growing to do, it was obvious Hailey had grown into her features more.</p><p>Bill didn’t know why his face heated up at the sight of her, but it did. And boy, when she looked up at the group, her blue eyes brightening before she gave them a soft smile, Bill swore his heart stopped. </p><p>“Holy shit,” Richie muttered as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Stan the Man, you’ve been holding out on us. Your cousin’s smokin’!”</p><p>Stan scrunched his nose up in disgust and was quick to whack his friend in the arm before Hailey could hear. Hailey gave her cousin a curious look as she came to stop before the boys, but Stan just shrugged in response.</p><p>Hailey shook her head with a small smile on her face before turning to the three boys who stood staring at her with wide eyes. “Boys,” Hailey greeted as she nodded at them. “It’s been a while.”</p><p>“It sure has and damm has time been good to you,” Richie flirted, throwing a wink to the girl who blushed slightly as she rolled her eyes.</p><p>“You sure haven’t changed one bit now have you, Tozier?” Hailey asked, her smile growing as Richie chuckled softly</p><p>“Oh, trust me, i’ve changed. In more ways than one,” Richie joked, winking at the girl.</p><p>“Beep beep, Richie,” Eddie hissed as he glared at the boy, instantly earning the attention of Hailey who smiled widely at the sight of him.</p><p>“Eddie!” Hailey exclaimed happily. “How are you? How’s your mum?”</p><p>“I’m-i’m doing just fine, Hailey. Thanks for asking,” Eddie blushed, surprised that she had asked him that. “And...uh...my mum’s doing well.”</p><p>“That's good,” Hailey smiled before turning her attention to the last person in the group. Her smile was wide as her eyes flickered over Bill who was staring at her in awe.</p><p>“H-H-Hi,” Bill finally managed to whisper out, both of them getting flashbacks to the first time they met.</p><p>“Hi,” Hailey replied softly, tilting her head ever so slightly as she looked at the boy. Bill couldn’t stop the blush that was growing on his cheeks and he was quick to look down at his feet, smiling slightly when he heard the soft giggles that escaped the girls lips.</p><p>“Damm, Bill’s already trying to get the girl,” Bill heard Richie whisper to Eddie. Thankfully Eddie seemed to be thinking the same as Bill and was quick to whack the boy in the back of his head as he gave him a ‘what the fuck’ look.</p><p>Stan shook his head at his friends before clearing his throat to gain their attention. “We should probably get going if we want to stay at the barrens for a while,” Stan suggested, his eyes flickering between the three boys before landing on his cousin.</p><p>Bill coughed and shifted awkwardly by his bike before nodding his head. “Stan’s right. We sh-sh-should go,” Bill said and the others didn’t object.</p><p>Not having a bike of her own, Hailey walked over and joined Stan on his bike, wrapping her arms around her cousin's waist before they took off along with the others. Hailey couldn’t help but smile and hold her arms out by her side as she enjoyed the feeling of the wind rushing through her hair and the sun kissing her face.</p><p>It was moments like these where Hailey forgot about all of the problems that seemed to follow her wherever she went, her parents’ divorce being pushed to the back of her head as a feeling of happiness took over her body. For that feeling as if she were flying and the happiness coursing through her veins, it was enough to make her feel like she was on top of the world.</p><p> Bill was unable to stop himself from looking towards the girl, a smile appearing on his face as he admired her. As if sensing his gaze, Hailey’s eyes flickered open and she glanced over to him. Their eyes locked for a quick second before Bill looked away, silently wondering to himself why he kept staring at the girl and why she made him so flustered.</p><p>Shaking his head, the boy quickly began to pedal fast, exclaiming, “Hi-ho Silver awaaay!”</p><p>This earned a loud round of laughter from the others.</p><p>“Your old lady bike’s too fast for us!” Richie complained as him and the others hurried after Bill and towards their destination.</p><p>The Barrens. </p><p>—-</p><p> </p><p>“That’s poison ivy. And that’s poison ivy,” Stan listed off pointing to different plants. “And that’s poison ivy.”</p><p>Hailey glanced at her cousin and gave him a confused look, but just shook her head and looked at the ground, not wanting to have to explain to him how not everything was poison ivy.</p><p>However, Eddie seemed to be the only one to believe him, the boy’s eyes widening in horror as she stepped away from the plants. He bumped into Hailey and gave her an apologetic smile before looking at Stan. “Where? Where’s the poison ivy?” He asked.</p><p>Stan went to point at the plants again, but Richie was quick to dismiss the boy. “No where, not every fucking plant is poison ivy, Stanley,” Richie muttered in annoyance making Stan’s face drop slightly.</p><p>Hailey glanced at her cousin, giving him a sympathetic smile as she reached out and grabbed a hold of his arm, hugging it lightly. Stan’s eyes met her own and he returned the smile, already letting Richie’s words roll off of him.</p><p>“Okay well I’m starting to get itchy now and I’m pretty sure this is not good for me,” Eddie said as the five began to walk towards the Barrens, ditching their bikes at the side of the river.</p><p>“Do you use the same bathroom as your mother?” Richie asked, glancing back at the small boy who frowned and nodded his head.</p><p>“Sometimes, yeah.”</p><p>“Then you probably have crabs.”</p><p>A look of pure horror flickered over Eddie’s face as she looked at Richie who was trying not to burst out laughing. “That’s so not funny,” Eddie frowned.</p><p>Hailey watched as Bill turned his flashlight on before taking the lead and starting to journey into the sewers. The girl grimaced slightly at the sloshing sound that followed as the boy walked further into the sewers, the smell hitting her nose and it was taking all of her not to gag.</p><p>She didn’t want to upset Bill, so Hailey continued walking forward just behind Richie. However, Stan stopped short and since she was holding onto his arm, she was forced to stop as well. She turned to give her cousin a confused look only to find him staring at the sewers with a disgusted look in his face, a tiny bit of fear evident in his eyes.</p><p>“Aren’t you guys coming in?” Richie called out and that’s when Hailey noticed that not only had her and Stan stopped, but Eddie as well.</p><p>“Uhuh that’s grey water," Eddie replied with a shake of his head.</p><p>Richie gave the boy a look before scrunching his nose and rolling his eyes. “What the hell is grey water?” Richie asked, sounding almost exasperated.</p><p>“It’s basically piss and shit. So I’m just telling you…” Eddie began. “You guys are splashing around in tons of Derry pee.”</p><p>Hailey chuckled softly and looked away from the boy, her eyes locking on Bill who was walking further into the sewer. Not wanting to go alone knowing that Richie would be arguing with Eddie for a while, Hailey gently let go of her cousin’s arm and slipped into the sewers.</p><p>Stan didn’t notice her walking away till it was too late. He tried to grab for her, but the girl was already walking away and Stan was too afraid to go after her, so he was left standing there with a frown on his face.</p><p>“Are...are you serious?” Eddie questioned as Hailey walked past Richie who had picked up a stick that had been floating in the water. He began to sniff it and Eddie gagged.</p><p>“Doesn’t smell like caca to me, Señor,” Richie told him.</p><p>“O-O-Okay, i can smell it from here,” Eddie complained.</p><p>“It’s probably just your breath wafting back into your face,” Richie joked, making Eddie huff in frustration.</p><p>Eddie inhaled deeply trying to keep himself from yelling at Richie and only when he was calm did he speak again. “Have you ever heard of a staph infection?” He asked.</p><p>“Oh, I’ll show you a staph infection,” Richie said as he went to pick up something with the stick, neither of the noticing Stan rolling his eyes at the two quarrelling boys.</p><p>Bill didn’t even turn as he heard his two best friends arguing, the situation being nothing new. He merely rolled his eyes and continued flashing his flashlight towards the water, hoping to find a sign that his little brother Georgie had been there.</p><p>“That’s so unsanitary,” Eddie cried out. “This is literally…This is literally like swimming inside of a toilet bowl right now. Have you ever heard of listeria?” Eddie’s voice was cut off by him screaming as Richie tossed something from the sewer at him.</p><p>Hailey chuckled softly before finally reaching Bill’s side. He was just standing back up with something in his hand and turned to look at his friends only to bump into Hailey, the two suddenly face to face. Bill’s eyes widened at the close proximity, but it was like he was frozen in headlights and unable to move.</p><p>Hailey blinked in surprise, her eyes flickering over Bill’s face. She couldn’t help but notice the slight blush that was beginning to grow on his cheeks, but she wasn’t one to talk since hers were turning red as well.</p><p>Did you…did you find anything?” Hailey asked softly and that was enough to have Bill snapping out of whatever trance he had been in. The boy quickly took a step back before looking down.</p><p>Y-Y-Yeah,” He whispered as he shined the flashlight on the shore he had found floating in the water.</p><p>Hailey took a step forward, not really caring about how close they were as she took a step closer to take at the shoe. However, Bill did notice their closeness and he really hoped she didn’t hear his shaken breathing or his heart which felt like it was about to thump out of his chest.</p><p>He had hoped that after not seeing the girl for five years, that his old feelings for her would be gone. But boy was he wrong. Seeing her again just made all the feelings surface once again and if he didn’t know any better he might’ve said that they were worse then last time.</p><p>“Betty Ripsom,” Hailey whispered out, reading the small tag on the inside. A small gasp escaped her lips and she looked up at Bill. “Stanley mentioned her once. She is the girl that went missing not too long ago, right?”</p><p>Bill nodded and Hailey took a step back as she let out a shaky breath. “Well, shit,” she whispered, the sound of her cursing being so adorable that Bill couldn’t stop the corner of his mouth from twitching upo slightly.</p><p>Bill seemed to realise what he was doing and quickly shook his head to rid himself of his thoughts of Hailey before looking towards his friends who were still crowded by the entrance. “Guys!” Bill called out, the three boys instantly going quiet as they turned to see Bill holding the shoe while Hailey held a hand to her forehead. </p><p>“Shit,” Stan muttered, his voice cracking slightly in fear. “Don’t tell me that’s…”</p><p>“No. Georgie was w-w-wearing galoshes,” Bill informed him, but that didn’t seem to make Stan feel any better. Richie walked over to Hailey and Bill before taking a look at the shoe as well.</p><p>"Whose shoe is it?” Eddie asked.</p><p>“It’s Betty Ripsom’s,” Richie replied as he read the name written inside.</p><p>“Shit! Shit, oh god, oh fuck! Eddie exclaimed as he shook his head. “I don’t like this.”</p><p>“How do you think Betty feels?” Richie asked, causing Hailey to look at him. “Running around theses tunnels with only one fucking shoe.” The boy hopped on one foot and let out a small laugh but the others didn’t laugh.</p><p>Richie looked to Hailey, hoping to at least earn a laugh out of the girl but she merely rolled her eyes at him and lightly whacked him in the back of the head. Richie gave her a shy smile and that was enough to make her let out a small laugh, Richie’s smile instantly widening at that.</p><p>“What if she’s still here?” Stan asked, his voice small. That caused Hailey and Richie to look away from each other and over to the boy, Bill finally pulling his gaze away from Hailey with a sad look in his eyes.</p><p>Hailey gulped before looking at the tunnel behind her. She then glanced at Bill, the boy’s eyes locking with hers almost instantly. She seemed to be silently asking him if he wanted to do this and he gave her the smallest nod in return, Hailey took in a deep breath before beginning to walk further into the sewers with Bill by her side.</p><p>Richie noticed the two moving and was quick to fall into step behind them, calling over his shoulder, “Eddie, come on!”</p><p>“My mom will have an aneurysm, okay, if she finds out we were playing down here,” Eddie called out, his words making the three stop. “I’m serious.”</p><p>Hailey couldn’t help but think that Eddie had a point. If her parents were here they would react the same way. That is...if they even cared.</p><p>“Bill?” Eddie called out, knowing that Bill was the one calling the shots. The boy was hesitant to Turn around, but when he did he found four pairs of eyes staring back at him, four lives that he was basically in charge of at that moment.</p><p>“If-If i was Betty Ripsom, I would want us to find me. G-G-Georgie too,” Bill said, his words making Eddie and Stan look down. It was obvious neither of them wanted to be here and if Hailey was entirely honest with herself, there was a part of her that would much rather be at the quarry than walking through a sewer.</p><p>“what if I don’t want to find them?” Eddie finally asked, his question making Bill look at him in surprise. “I mean, no offence, Bill, but I do not want to end up like G-” Eddie quickly stopped himself before he could finish and Richie and Hailey looked to Bill who was trying his hardest not to cry.</p><p>Hailey’s felt her heart ache for the boy and she ever so slightly reached out before placing a hand on his arm, a small way of comforting him without bringing attention to his state or them. Bill clenched his jaw and looked to the ground while Eddie sighed from the entrance to the tunnel.</p><p>“I don’t want to go missing either,” Eddie corrected himself.</p><p>“He has a point,” Stan muttered and that was enough to have Hailey’s letting go of Bill’s arm to look at her cousin.</p><p>“You too?” Bill asked, a hint of betrayal in his voice.</p><p>Stan looked at Bill in silence for a minute before inhaling and saying, “It’s summer. Hailey hasn’t been here in five years and this is the first summer I finally get to have her back again.”</p><p>Hailey felt her heart drop at that, the sadness that her cousin had been trying to hide from her for all these years he’d had to spend without her being hidden within those very words. She hadn’t known he had missed her as much as she had missed him.</p><p>“We’re supposed to be having fun,”Stan said, his eyes locked on Hailey before he forced them away to look at Bill. “This isn’t fun. This is scary and disgusting-”</p><p>Before Stan could finish what he had been saying, the sound of splashing water had the five tensing up while Stan and Eddie quickly turned to look behind them. Hailey was quick to run back towards the entrance, stopping by Stan’s side as he reached out and put a hand on his arm.</p><p>Their eyes widened slightly at the sight of a boy around their age flailing in the water. He tried to get up onto his feet only to fall again and it was only when Hailey squinted her eyes to get a good look at him that she noticed he was bleeding from both his stomach and his nose.</p><p>“Holy shit,” Richie cried out as he ran over and stopped between Eddie and Hailey, the boy looking up to them once he realised he wasn’t alone.</p><p>“What happened to you?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. T H R E E - lois lane</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Haliey was the first to break the silent staring contest the boys all seemed to be having, quickly stepping by her cousin and hurrying over to the boy who was lying in the water with a bloody shirt. “Are you okay?” Haliey asked softly as she knelt down in front of the boy who just stared up at her with wide eyes, surprised that she was talking to him.</p><p>“Not…not really,” the boy admitted and by the slight crack in his voice, Haliey could tell it took all of his willpower not to cry. She didn’t blame him for wanting to. Judging by the amount of blood, it looked like whatever injury he had was painful. Not to mention that the events leading up to him getting hurt might’ve been painful as well.</p><p>Footsteps behind her had Haliey turning to see that Stan, Bill, Richie, and Eddie had come over to join her, their eyes on the hurt boy while Eddie grimaced. Haliey looked back at the boy and gave him a kind smile as her eyes flickered over his face.</p><p>His dirty blonde hair was matted to his face, slightly covering his brown eyes which stared back at her almost nervously, like he was afraid of what was going to happen or what the group would do to him. He was leaning back slightly as he were afraid they would take a punch and Haliey couldn’t help but frown slightly, a sadness flashing through her eyes as she stared at the boy.</p><p>No one spoke as Haliey reached out and gently brushed the boy’s hair from out of his eyes. The small gesture was enough to make the boy blush as he looked at the girl shyly. Haliey just gave him a gentle smile as she whispered, “We’re going to help you, okay?”</p><p>The boy stared at her hesitantly for a moment before nodding his head ever so slightly. Haliey’s smile was enough to warm the boy’s heart as she gently took his hand and helped him on to his feet, turning to the other boys in the process.</p><p>To her surprise, they were all staring at her with wide eyes. Stan’s was out of pure pride for having someone as sweet and gentle as his cousin. Richie and Eddie were just in shock, having forgotten just how nice and caring the girl in front of them was. Then there was Bill who was staring at her in awe, the corners of his mouth twitching up slightly as his heart skipped a beat.</p><p>Haliey didn’t seem to notice their expressions and only gave them the smallest of smiles as she said, “Come on, boys. Let’s get him out of here.”</p><p>The four seemed to snap out of their thoughts at that and quickly rushed forward to help Haliey get the boy over to their bikes. With some help they managed to get the boy onto Bill’s bike and Haliey made sure that the boy was secure before she looked to Bill, giving him a small thankful smile before she hurried after her cousin to get on his bike.</p><p>Bill stared after Haliey for a moment, his mouth hanging open slightly as he watched her get on Stan’s bike. From behind him, a small voice whispered out, “She’s really kind.”</p><p>Bill glanced behind him and at the boy who shared his bike and smiled softly as he looked back at Haliey. “Sh-Sh-She sure is,” Bill agreed before him and the others began to bike away from the Barrens and towards town, neither of them noticing Patrick Hockstetter, a member of the Bowers gang, stumble into the small river right after they left.</p><p>The ride out of the woods was mostly quiet as the group biked towards town. It was only when they had left the woods that Eddie began to ramble and lucky for Stan and Haliey, they were the closest to the boy and got to hear all of it.</p><p>“I think it’s great that we’re helping the new kid, but we also need to think about our own safety. I mean, he’s bleeding all over and you guys know there’s an AIDS epidemic happening right now as we speak. I mean my mom’s friend in New York City got it juist by touching a dirty pole in the subway and she got AIDS blood into her system through a hangnail,” Eddie said as he glanced over at Haliey and Stan, the girl staring back at him intently while she leaned her head against her cousin’s back.</p><p>“A hangnail?” Haliey questioned, knowing that the best way to handle Eddie’s rambling was to go along with it.</p><p>Besides, she knew he secretly liked it when someone actually seemed to enjoy when he talked and it was obvious that still applied by the way he smiled ever so slightly before exclaiming, “A hangnail!”</p><p>Stan let out a soft sigh and glanced at his friend before looking back ahead as he followed after Bill and Richie, Eddie right beside him.</p><p>“And-and they can amputate legs and arms. But…but how do you amputate a wai-? How do you amputate a waist?” Eddie asked, his eyes wide as he realized that the boy they found was going to die because they didn’t know how to amputate a waist.</p><p>“Eddie,” Haliey said softly, her voice causing the boy to look over at her while he nervously bit his lip. “It’s going to be okay. We’re not going to have to amputate his waist and the boy is going to be just fine.”</p><p>“But how do you-?” Eddie began to ask.</p><p>“Just trust me,” she said as her eyes flickered over Eddie’s face. “You trust me, right?”</p><p>For a moment Eddie was brought back to when the two were six. He had just fallen and scraped his knee on some gravel and since they were too far away from his house to get his mother, Haliey had been the one to bandage him up with the things in his fanny pack as she softly hummed to him, her humming being enough to calm the crying boy down while he stared at her with wide eyes.</p><p>Being six years old, Eddie had thought his scraped knee was going to be the end of the world. But Haliey had been the one to calm him down. She had even the one to assure him that he was going to be okay and for the first time Eddie had believed her. It wlas that day that their friendship began to form and by the end of that summer, the two were like brother and sister.</p><p>Even after five years of not seeing her, Eddie still saw her as such and knew that his trust in her would never waiver.</p><p>“I trust you,” Eddie agreed, his eyes staring directly at Haliey while Stan looked back at the two with a soft smile. It always had made Stan happy to see his friends get along so well with his cousin.</p><p>Haliey gave the boy a small smile before looking ahead as the group turned their bikes down an alley next to the pharmacy they needed to go to.</p><p>“You know that there are alleys full of AIDS infected needles, right?” Eddie spoke up, his tone still coming out nervous but not as much now that he had talked to Haliey. “You guys do know that?”</p><p>The group came to a stop and Haliey was quick to hop off Stan’s bike and head over to Bill, the two helping the boy get off before sitting him down on top of a box. Haliey and Bill both knelt down in front of the boy and silently checked to make sure he was alright before Haliey whispered, “I’m Haliey by the way. This is Bill.”</p><p>Bill nodded at the boy in greeting while the boy looked up at them for a minute before nodding. “Yeah, I-I know Bill. We…we had a class together,” the boy said, not noticing the way a flicker of confusion flashed through Bill’s eyes. “We never talked though, so I doubt you know me. I…I’m Ben.”</p><p>Haliey smiled softly at the boy as she reached out to squeeze his hand. “Well, Ben, you’re going to be just fine, okay? We’re going to go get you some things to clean you up and then you’ll be good as new in no time,” she said, the optimism in her voice being enough to make Ben calm down slightly.</p><p>“Thank you,” Ben whispered making Haliey smile widely.</p><p>“It’s no problem,” she assured him as she stood up, Bill following suit.</p><p>Bill looked at his friends as he began to back up. “Alright, s-s-so, Richie, wait here. Come on,” he said before him and Haliey took off towards the pharmacy, Stan and Eddie right behind them.</p><p>Richie frowned as his friends left before looking down at Ben who was holding onto his stomach in pain, “Glad I got to meet you before you died.” Ben glanced up at Richie before the two looked away, an awkward silence falling upon them.</p><p>At that time, the others managed to reach the pharmacy door and were quick to head in before Eddie led them straight to the aisle that held all sorts of bandages, gauze, ointments and more than necessary supplies than they would need.</p><p>Eddie on the other hand seemed to think they needed everything he could possibly grab and went down the aisle before grabbing so much that he could barely hold it all.</p><p>Bill and Haliey watched the boy silently while Stan counted the money that they had. “Can we afford all that?” Bill finally asked, knowing that all of the things Eddie was grabbing had to cost a lot.</p><p>Stan frowned before showing the three the little money that they had and from what Haliey could see, it really wasn’t that much. A couple of dollars perhaps?</p><p>“It’s all we got,” Stan muttered while Eddie turned to look at the money with wide eyes.</p><p>“You kidding me?” Eddie asked, his voice soft as another wave of nervousness washed over him. The others all sighed while Stan stuffed the money into his pocket, each of them trying to think of what to do next.</p><p>“Wait, you have an account here don’t you?” Bill asked, his eyes landing on Eddie while the Uris cousins looked to the young boy.</p><p>“If my mom finds out I bought all this stuff for myself, I’ll spend the whole rest of the week in the emergency room getting x-rayed,” Eddie told them, each of them letting out a sigh as they realized they wouldn’t be able to use the boy’s account.</p><p>It was at that moment that someone else entered the aisle and the four were quick to look at the newcomer, some of the items in Eddie’s hands falling onto the ground in the process.</p><p>There at the end of the aisle stood a girl with long red hair tied back in a ponytail. Her startling blue eyes stared at the four and Haliey couldn’t help but think the girl was extremely pretty. Her freckled face and flawless features being something Haliey would die to have herself.</p><p>The girl seemed to be startled as she stared at the four, quickly hiding something behind her back and by the looks of it, Haliey knew exactly what it was. Haliey let her eyes flicker to Bill, Stan, and Eddie and by the startled looks that seemed to be on their faces as well, the four obviously knew each other.</p><p>Haliey shook her head slightly at the four before looking at the girl and asking softly, “You okay?”</p><p>“I’m fine,” the girl insisted a little harshly before she winced at her own words. “What’s wrong with you?”</p><p>Stan frowned, not liking the tone the girl used with his cousin before saying, “None of your business.”</p><p>“Stanley,” Haliey scolded as she looked back at her cousin, but all Stan did was give her a confused and annoyed look in response.</p><p>“There’s a kid outside, looks like someone killed him,” Eddie suddenly said, Stan and Haliey both giving the boy an incredulous look.</p><p>Knowing that there was no way around it, Bill spoke up and said, “We need some s-s-s-supplies, but we don’t have enough money.”</p><p>The girl’s eyes flickered over the four before she gave them a small nod. “Okay then. You guys be ready to run when I tell you,” the girl told them before she began to walk down the aisle.</p><p>The four blinked in surprise before Eddie scrunched up his nose and asked, “Wait, what?”</p><p>The girl ignored him and only looked over the group before stopping on Haliey. “Do you mind helping me out?” the girl asked.</p><p>“Uh…sure?” Haliey said, still unsure what was happening but stepping forward to follow the girl towards the counter.</p><p>“Woah. Woah. Woah. Wait,” Stan began, but Haliey was quick to stop him from stepping forward.</p><p>“It’s okay, Stanley. I’ll be right out there in a minute, okay?” Haliey assured him.</p><p>Stan was silent as he stared at the girl before finally allowing his gaze to fall on his cousin. He nodded a little reluctantly and Haliey gave him a small smile before beginning to follow the girl down the aisle while the boys watched after them.</p><p>“I’m Beverly Marsh by the way,” the red head introduced herself as she glanced at Haliey.</p><p>“Haliey,” she said as she reached out and shook the girl’s hand. “Haliey Uris.”</p><p>“Uris?” Beverly questioned before it seemed to click. “Oh. So you and Stan are related?”</p><p>“Yes. We’re cousins actually. I’m just visiting for the summer,” Haliey explained.</p><p>“That makes sense why I’ve never seen you at school before,” Beverly hummed before the two finally began to approach the counter.</p><p>“So what’s the plan?” Haliey asked, curious as to what the girl had in store for them.</p><p>Beverly just sent the girl a small smile and winked before saying, “Just follow my lead.” Haliey didn’t have time to question her before Beverly had gently grabbed onto her wrist and pulled her up to the counter.</p><p>Haliey didn’t quite understand what was going on and glanced back at her cousin and new friends. They gave her a confused look and she merely shrugged, not knowing what was going on.</p><p>“I like your glasses, Mr. Keene,” Beverly suddenly said causing Haliey to snap her attention back to what was going on. Her eyes flickered over to the pharmacist with the glasses and gave Beverly a side glance. “You look just like Clark Kent.”</p><p>The man let out a small laugh and adjusted his glasses as he looked down shyly. “Oh, I don’t know about that,” Mr. Keene said.</p><p>“Can I try them?” Beverly questioned as she tried to put as much curiosity into her tone as she could. It was then that everything seemed to click in place for Haliey and she silently chuckled to herself as she realized what was going on.</p><p>Mr. K was silent for a moment but nodded, “Mmm. Sure.” He then took his glasses off before handing them over to Beverly who chuckled and put them on.</p><p>Beverly glanced over at Haliey and sent her a smile. “What do you think?” she asked.</p><p>“You look just like Lois Lane! Doesn’t she look like Lois Lane, Mr. Keene?” Haliey questioned as she played along and pointed to the girl with a smile.</p><p>Mr. Keene smiled softly before saying, “Well, how about that? She does look like Lois Lane.”</p><p>“Really?” Beverly asked with a small childish laugh that made Haliey want to chuckle at how fake it actually was. Mr. Keene didn’t seem to notice as he just nodded and hummed in response.</p><p>Beverly took the glasses off, making sure to keep the smile on her face. “Well, here you go,” she said as she went to hand them back, but she ‘accidentally’ hit several packs of Carolina menthol off the counter and onto the floor. “Shoot. I’m so sorry.”</p><p>“It’s okay,” Mr. Keene assured them as he put his glasses back on and bent down to pick the containers up off the ground.</p><p>Once he was out of view, Beverly and Haliey looked over their shoulders and made eye contact with the boys. Beverly gave them a small nod and Eddie, Bill, and Stan were quick to rush down the aisle.</p><p>Eddie ended up bumping into a display, but Bill was quick to grab the boy before they followed Stan out the front door. Haliey chuckled softly to herself and turned back around as Beverly stuffed a pack of cigarettes in her pocket.</p><p>The two girls glanced at each other before smiling softly and giving each other a fist bump. Haliey could already tell this was going to be a beautiful start to a new friendship.</p><p>- - -</p><p>“Just suck the wound,” Richie muttered impatiently as he looked to Eddie who was busy trying to fix Ben up. Ben glanced up at Richie before looking back down at Eddie who frowned as he pressed some gauze against Ben’s stomach.</p><p>“I need to focus right now,” Eddie said, biting his tongue in an attempt to stop himself from yelling at Richie who was currently annoying him. Eddie knew Richie was merely bored, but that didn’t stop his actions from being any less annoying.</p><p>“You need to focus?” Richie asked, his nose scrunching up as if he couldn’t believe what the boy was saying.</p><p>Eddie ignored the questioning tone in his friend’s voice and said, “Yeah, can you go get me something? Jesus.”</p><p>“Oh, what do you need?” Richie asked and for a second Eddie swore the boy sounded as if he actually wanted to help.</p><p>“Go get my bifocals, they’re in my second fanny pack,” Eddie instructed,</p><p>“Why do you have two fanny packs?” Stan asked confused, while him and Richie shared a look.</p><p>“I need to focus right now and it’s a long story,” Eddie muttered as he pressed the gauze against Ben’s stomach a little harder, Ben wincing in response.</p><p>“I don’t want to hear it,” Richie assured him earning a glare from his friend.</p><p>Bill shook his head at his friends in slight amusement before biting his lip nervously as he realized Haliey had yet to return. He knew she was fine, but that couldn’t stop him from walking out of the alley to look in the direction of the pharmacy, hoping to see her and know that she was okay.</p><p>It was at that exact moment that the door to the pharmacy opened up and it was almost like everything went in slow motion for Bill, his eyes locking on Haliey and his mouth dropping open slightly as he watched her walk out.</p><p>He swore he had never seen someone as beautiful as Haliey Uris in his life. Even all the celebrity crushes he had would never match up to the young girl in his eyes and he knew he would never forget a face like hers for as long as he lived.</p><p>Her h/c hair seemed to shine in the sunlight as she walked out, her braid still being perfectly in tact with a few stray hairs poking out here and there that weren’t really noticeable. Her skin was glowing, almost making her even brighter in Bill’s eyes and making it hard for him to focus on anything else.</p><p>Then there was that smile of hers, the one that seemed to reach her eyes and make them crinkle on the sides. That kind of smile that only belonged to Haliey Uris and that made Bill’s heart skip a beat. It was that special smile of hers that Bill knew shamed the sun.</p><p>He barely even registered Beverly walking out beside her, the two girls beginning to make their way down the sidewalk before Haliey turned her head and caught sight of Bill. The sight of her eyes was enough to leave him breathless. It was like her eyes held their own vocabulary that Bill desperately wanted to learn and each time he saw them he was met with a new word he had never heard of.</p><p>He hadn’t felt this way since he last saw Haliey five years prior and that was when Bill knew that he was completely done for. For his feelings for her had never gone away, only been tucked away until the day when she came back and they could flourish once again.</p><p>It was a crush he assured himself. Nothing but a crush.</p><p>Haliey’s smile being directed towards him was the only thing that seemed to snap him out of his thoughts, the two girls stopping in front of the boy while Bill desperately blinked in an attempt to snap himself out of it.</p><p>The only thing Bill could think to do was turn his attention to Beverly, the red head already giving him a calculating look as her eyes flickered between Bill and Haliey. Bill didn’t give her time to think much longer before he began to reach in his pocket, pulling out a lonely dollar bill.</p><p>“Uhmm, th-th-thanks,” Bill muttered as he held the dollar out.</p><p>Beverly seemed to realize what he was doing, but didn’t question it as she held up her pack of cigarettes and smiled. “Even Steven,” she assured him with a wink.</p><p>“Oh god, he’s bleeding,” Stan’s panicking voice rang out from the alley, causing the three to glance that way.</p><p>Beverly’s eyes widened slightly before a look of confusion flashed across her face. “Ben from Soc?” she whispered before beginning to make her way down the alley and towards Ben who was surrounded by Eddie, Richie, and Stan.</p><p>That left Haliey and Bill standing there on the sidewalk. Haliey turned to look at Bill at the same time as the boy and she smiled softly while Bill looked to the ground bashfully.</p><p>“Th-Th-That was really cool…” Bill whispered. “What you d-d-did back there.”</p><p>Haliey tilted her head slightly as she looked at the boy and shrugged. “It was all Beverly’s idea. I was just kind of there. I didn’t do much,” Haliey told him.</p><p>“I wasn’t t-t-talking about that,” Bill said, his eyes flickering up to look at the girl. “I was talking about the b-b-barrens and how you helped Ben. That was r-r-really cool.”</p><p>Haliey blinked in surprise, her cheeks growing a tinge pink at the fact that Bill was telling her that her helping Ben was 'cool.’ Really cool, nonetheless.</p><p>“Oh, I would’ve done the same for anyone,” Haliey shrugged it off like it was no big deal.</p><p>“I-I-I know,” Bill smiled at the girl, his gaze on her soft and gentle enough to make her smile widen slightly.</p><p>“Thanks,” she whispered and Bill smiled shyly at the girl and bowed his head before nodding towards the others.</p><p>“We should-” he began, but Haliey quickly took the hint and nodded her head before the two began to walk down the alley together side by side, only coming to a stop behind Beverly who was watching the boys in silence.</p><p>“Are you okay?” Beverly finally spoke up, her worried eyes locked on Ben. “That looks like it hurts.”</p><p>Ben glanced over at the girl and his eyes widened before he quickly dropped his shirt and sat up, Eddie backing up slightly once he couldn’t see the wound anymore. “No, I’m good. I just fell,” Ben assured the red head, wanting to seem strong and brave for her.</p><p>“Yeah, right into Henry Bowers,” Richie muttered, his eyes narrowing at Beverly almost accusingly.</p><p>“Shut it, R-R-Richie!” Bill hissed at his friend causing both Beverly and Haliey to look at the boy confused. Haliey didn’t quite understand what the big deal was. Why did they not want to tell Beverly what had happened?</p><p>“Why? It’s the truth,” Richie persisted while Ben looked down at the ground almost sadly.</p><p>Beverly’s gaze fell on the hurt boy once again before she asked in a teasing way, “You sure they got 'the right stuff’ to fix you up?” Ben looked up at Beverly and the two shared a small smile that made Haliey look between them suspiciously, wondering what the two were talking about.</p><p>“You know w-w-w-w-we’ll take care of him,” Bill interrupted, the red head looking away from Ben and over at Bill. “Thanks again, Beverly.”</p><p>Beverly nodded slightly, “Sure, maybe I’ll see you around.”</p><p>“Yeah, we were maybe thinking about going to the q-q-q-quarry tomorrow, if you wanna…” Bill muttered, his eyes flickering over his friends who were all looking at him surprised. “Come?”</p><p>Haliey locked eyes with Richie and mouthed, “Since when were we going to the quarry?” Richie merely shrugged in response.</p><p>Haliey glanced back over at Bill, a small frown appearing on her face as she realized he had made it up on the spot so that Beverly could hang out with them more. It’s not that she had anything against Beverly because she didn’t, but something about knowing Bill had been the one to suggest her hanging out with them more made Haliey feel weird.</p><p>“Good to know,” Beverly said as she nodded. “Thanks.” She then turned and began to walk away, but not before waving goodbye to the boys and Haliey.</p><p>“Bye, Beverly,” Haliey called out, waving at the girl and giving her a small smile despite what had just happened.</p><p>“Bye, Haliey. It was nice meeting you,” Beverly aid before she smiled at the girl and disappeared around the corner.</p><p>Haliey stared at the alley for a moment longer before turning around, her eyes instantly locking with Bill who was staring at her. She was quick to look away, the action making Bill’s eyebrows furrow in confusion and his happy expression dropped slightly.</p><p>“Nice going,” Stan muttered causing them to all look at the boy who was glaring at Richie, “bringing up Bowers in front of her.”</p><p>“Yeah, did you hear what she did?” Eddie asked making Haliey furrow her eyebrows in confusion as she walked over to her cousin. She stopped by Stan’s side and the boy glanced at her, sighing in relief slightly at the sight of her.</p><p>“What’d she do?” Ben and Haliey both asked, their eyes locking for a moment before they looked to the others for an explanation.</p><p>“More like who’d she do?” Richie corrected them. “From what I hear, the list is longer than my wang.”</p><p>Stan rolled his eyes before muttering, “That’s not saying much.”</p><p>Haliey’s eyes widened in surprised before she quickly put a hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing out loud. Richie glared at Stan and Haliey was quick to hide her face in her cousin’s arm as she chuckled softly, not noticing Stan’s smile as he realized he had just made his cousin laugh.</p><p>“They’re j-j-just rumors,” Bill assured the group while Richie rolled his eyes.</p><p>“Anyway, Bill had her back in third grade,” Richie explained, this making both Ben and Haliey look to the boy. “They kissed in the school play. The reviews said that you can’t fake that kind of passion!”</p><p>Haliey’s lips twitched downward ever so slightly, but she was quick to hide it, already used to having to hide how she really feels due to everything going on with at home.</p><p>Richie clapped his hands together to gain everyone’s attention once again. “Now, pip pip and tally-ho, my good fellows, I do believe this chap requires our utmost attention. Now get in there Dr. K! Come on, fix him up!” Richie exclaimed in a Bristish accent as he gently shoved the boy towards Ben.</p><p>Eddie frowned and bent down in front of Ben as he glared at Richie. “Why don’t you shut the fuck up, Einstein, because I know what I’m doing and I don’t want you doing the British guy routine right now,” Eddie muttered.</p><p>Richie just ignored him and continued on with his British accent, “Suck the wound. Get in there.”</p><p>The usual banter between the two was enough to make Haliey smile softly, but no one except for Bill seemed to realize that it didn’t quite reach her eyes like normal. Haliey ignored Bill’s questioning gaze and instead leaned against her cousin as they watched Eddie fix Ben up.</p><p>Maybe their first day of summer hadn’t been what they had been hoping for, but with her new friends and her cousin by her side, Haliey knew it could only get better from there.</p><p>Right?</p>
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